Hi All,
I just replaced my engine mounts last night and thought I'd ask a few questions and share some tips as well.
My new motor and tranny mounts arrived earlier this week so with tools in hand and Wayne's 101 Projects on the bench, I set to work. Seemed like a pretty straight forward swap. Did a quick skim of Wayne's book and noted that I should only attempt one side at a time so the engine mounting bar wouldn't move or drop down out of alignment.
Load everything up w/ PB Blaster, kick back and enjoy some wine and cheese, in the garage w/ the wife while the magical elixer does its work. For those that have seen my garage on PPOT, it may be messy, but it's classy
A few grunts and groans later and the mounting bolt breaks free on the passenger side. I smugly think to myself, I'll be in and out of this sucker in under 45 minutes. Last thread on the bolt releases its hold and... CRAP. Not only did the cross member move, but it left no forwarding address. It dropped about 3 inches down and 2 inches to the rear.
OK, I can handle this. I'll just jack up the engine a little. Afterall, the jack it was already under there to prevent the engine from dropping down (did I say prevent??? Hmmm, must've been mistaken). A few pumps of the handle and I'm back in business, right? Wrong. WTF!?!?! I'm lifting the car up, but the cross bar is still tucked in the bottom right corner laughing at me.
I'll show that smug little f'er who's boss - I've got a cherry picker that'll put him right back in his place. So, if you haven't ventured over to PPOT to see what my garage looks like, you may not appreciate how big of a chore it is to pull out my "awesome, I am king of the garage" cherry picker. It's now pitch black out as I roll the car out of the garage to roll the hoist around to the back of the car.
I've now been at this project for just over an hour. Wayne's book said 2 hours, plenty of time left to meet the deadline, right? I think I forgot to mention that my car is slightly lowered. Or maybe it was I just plain forgot in general. After all of my efforts to get the hoist out of the garge, the little f'er in the back right corner, unbenonst to me, is allies with the cherry picker. They now both join together in a round of mocking laughter as I try repeatedly to get the arms of the hoist to fit under the car. No matter what I do, no matter how I angle it, I'm about 2 inches short of where I need to be. This only encourages the mocking and abuse I'm forced to endure from the cross member and his new buddy the cherry picker.
At this point most previous victims, err... I mean vehicles would have endured the wrath of the Irish and whatever tool is closest. Take a deep breath and remember this is a highly tuned and precise machine of the highest degree. Heck, I have wine and cheese in the garage. F-it. Time for a beer.
On my way to grab a beer I run across my BFC (big f'n clamp). This is the mother of all c-clamps. If this doesn't work, time for a match and call to insurance... 15 minutes w/ the clamp and not only am I back in business, but I'm moving onto the diver's side mount.
If you've stuck with me this far, I'm sure you've learned the moral of the story is; A BFC is better than a BFCP (big f'n cherry picker) when it comes to changing out engine mounts.
Now onto the questions:
Were all of these trials and tribulations worth it?
Here are the old mounts (left 2) next to a new mount. I was expecting them to be in much worse shape than they are.
Question two, I bought the "sport mounts". Are the sport mounts stiffer than the stock mounts?
Thanks